How can we harvest existing steel elements and modular systems for direct re-use and what means do we have to evaluate their performance? And if we do indeed have to build new, how can we plan more intelligently to allow for maintenance, repair, and disassembly? How would we need to design the joints and constructive logic to anticipate re-use?

Steel is very often embedded in other systems of construction, playing key roles in the transitions or joints between different materials. We see that already in timber and concrete. But how can steel allow us to rethink other construction materials such as clay or straw-bale? Can a hybrid system with steel allow us to build taller with materials that until now have been limited in their capacity? Can the use of steel joints allow us to radically optimize the use of other resources?

Whether as fixed scaffolding or as mobile systems, steel presents a logic of mechanical joints that suggests flexibility and adaptability. This goes beyond the final dismantling but towards a performative adaptation that recognizes changes over diurnal or seasonal patterns. How can steel allow us to better rethink our use of spaces, responding to changing needs and demands of the users? What can we do better with steel in these questions than with other materials?

The modular systems often associated with steel construction allows for fast construction times and efficient use of resources with prefabrication. As we consider the housing pressures facing our urban environments, how can steel provide answers to faster and more efficient project delivery and construction? At the same time, how can we overcome the challenges such as fire codes and thermal bridging that have hindered the use of steel?